


At the End of the Day

by DraconicMusic



Category: Rockman X | Mega Man X
Genre: Comfort, Fluff, Gen, Hopeful Ending, Piggyback Rides, Post-X7, axl is tired and zero carries him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-23
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:14:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23809693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DraconicMusic/pseuds/DraconicMusic
Summary: Axl begins to feel exhausted during a mission. Zero takes notice of this after taking down a few Mechaniloids.
Relationships: Axl & Zero (Rockman)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 37





	At the End of the Day

**Author's Note:**

> I was feeling bored, so I decided to write some fluff with Axl and Zero. I apologize for not updating in a little while, I just sorta lost motivation to write anything. But I'm back (for now). Hope you enjoy this short fic.

Zero and Axl were currently in the middle of attempting to take down some rogue Mechaniloids. The duo were sent by the commander to do so a few hours ago, and Axl, being the eager hunter that he is, thought this would be a breeze.

Unfortunately, the mission ended up being a little more difficult than he thought. And it wasn’t just because of how large and irate the Mechaniloids were.

As Axl and the Crimson Hunter were giving their all against the Mechaniloids-turned-Mavericks, he found it more difficult to aim at them, and he felt like he couldn’t control his movements well. Not only that, Axl also felt unusually woozy, as if he was hit in the head. Despite this, the young gunslinger continued to fire at the Mavericks, not wanting to fail the mission.

By now, one of the Mechaniloids were destroyed, leaving the other one remaining. Just as Axl was about to fire, however, he felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him, and his muscles felt weak, his legs heavy. The gunslinger failed to notice the Mechaniloid raising one of its arms in preparation to pin Axl down, and in a matter of moments, Axl found himself pinned against the ground under the Maverick’s massive claw. With his whole body immobilized, he couldn’t move any of his limbs, and was already too delirious to try to escape.

Axl could only look on weakly in horror as the Mechaniloid began to charge a beam to obliterate its prey, but his eyes widened slightly upon hearing a sound that resembled metal being slashed, and the Mechaniloid seemed to freeze, its beam being interrupted. As Axl looked on, confused, he soon saw something, no, _someone,_ on top of the Mechaniloid.

It was Zero, wielding his Z-saber.

Axl realized that Zero must have struck the massive machine before it could finish him off. The Crimson Hunter seemed to notice Axl trapped underneath the Maverick’s claw. “Axl!” Zero exclaimed, his voice mildly urgent, before turning his attention back to the Mechaniloid he was standing on. He spent no time hesitating to dash towards the Mechaniloid’s arm, which was currently being used to hold Axl down. The Maverick turned its attention towards the red pest now on its shoulder, loosening its grip on the young gunslinger. With Axl now able to move again, he slowly got up, struggling to do so due to his exhaustion.

In the blink of an eye, Zero swung his Z-saber, cutting into the Mechaniloid’s arm and slicing it clean off, which was quickly followed by its head. Sparks erupted from exposed wires, and the Maverick began to collapse. Axl moved out of the way just in time before it could crush him.

Zero landed back on the ground, unscathed, and looked as if nothing had ever happened. He turned his attention to Axl, who looked rather weak.

“Are you alright, Axl?” Zero asked. “Yeah, I’m okay.” Axl replied, his voice sounding just as weak as he looked.

Upon noticing how haggard the young gunslinger was, Zero immediately became concerned. “Axl, what’s wrong?”

Axl tried to respond, but was stopped by a yawn before he was able to speak again. “Nothing’s wrong, just a little tired, that’s all.” He replied, trying to sound as casual as possible. ‘A little tired’ was probably the worst understatement he made.

Axl’s reply wasn’t enough to ease Zero’s concern. “When was the last time you recharged?” He asked, suspicion in his voice.

“Uh, I don’t remember exactly… But I think it was a long time…” Axl ended his speech with yet another yawn.

Zero’s eyes widened slightly. He now knew why Axl looked so haggard and worn-out. He briefly wondered why Axl would go out of his way to neglect to recharge, but that would have to wait. Right now Zero had to get the kid back to Headquarters, and get him to his capsule to rest.

“I’m taking you back to the base, Axl.” Zero told the shorter gunslinger. “You need to recharge.”

Axl made a noise that sounded like a mix between reluctance and agreement. “Okay…” He replied, his voice still as tired as ever. He won’t admit out loud, though he was at least somewhat grateful he would finally be able to get some rest. “Could you carry me back to the base, if that’s okay with you?”

Zero was reluctant at first, but seeing how exhausted his friend was, he found no harm in doing so, though he gave a sigh, but not in exasperation. “Sure.” He agreed. Axl walked over to behind Zero and, with some difficulty, jumped onto the Crimson Hunter’s back, surprising him a little. Axl wrapped his arms around Zero’s chest, while Zero put his arms under the younger Reploid’s legs to support him.

Axl gave another yawn, before leaning his head against Zero’s shoulder. “Wake me up when we get back…” He muttered, closing his eyes, and his systems promptly went into sleep mode.

With Axl now being held by Zero in a piggyback, Zero began to make his way back to the base. He briefly looked back at Axl, who now had a small smile on his face, as if comforted by Zero’s presence. Seeing the gunslinger smile gave Zero a sense of reassurance. He gave a small smile, knowing that his friend was safe.

As Zero was heading back to headquarters, he found himself reflecting over what happened that day, and up until now. As he did, the same image of Axl smiling from earlier briefly came into his mind. From that, Zero felt something, something which he now rarely felt.

That everything would be alright in the end.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked this fic. It's not as long as my other ones, but nonetheless I think it turned out okay. Some parts might need some editing, but I'll probably do that later once I get the chance. Constructive criticism is welcome.


End file.
